Washington vs. Falcons Free NFL Picks for Week 4

Two 1-2 teams look to get to .500 when the Washington Football Team travels to Atlanta to play the Falcons.

Washington had its first road game of the year on Sunday and was trounced by the Bills, falling behind 21-0 and never really threatening to pull an upset. Washington’s only win this season was by a point at home to the winless New York Giants.

Atlanta posted its first win of the season after an 0-2 start when the Falcons also victimized the lowly Giants, winning by three at Giants Stadium. The Falcons lost their other two games by 23 and 26 points.

Washington Football Team vs. Atlanta Falcons

Sunday, October 03, 2021 - 01:00 PM EDT at Mercedes Benz Stadium

Questions on Defense

Washington entered the season as a possible contender in the NFC East division. The key to Washington’s season was supposedly a maturing defense that was ready to take its place as one of the best in the NFL.

Three weeks in, that assumption has to be called into question. The Washington Football Team has allowed 92 points. Only the Lions, Falcons and Chiefs have given up more this season. The defense appeared to hit a low point in surrendering 43 to the Bills on Sunday, but Washington has struggled all three games.

The Chargers’ Justin Herbert completed two thirds of his passes and threw for 337 yards in the opener. Embattled Giants quarterback Daniel Jones put up 29 points on the WFT defense, and on Sunday, Josh Allen threw for 358, completed 74 percent of his throws and wasn’t sacked as the Bills held an 11 minute advantage in time of possession. That was only Washington’s second-worst possession time of the season—the Chargers had a more than 13 minute edge.

Washington ranks 31 out of 32 teams in points allowed, and opponents have converted 58 percent of third-down attempts.

https://youtu.be/RHHnqBO8Zws

Concerns Everywhere

In addition to allowing 94 points, the third-most in the NFL, the Falcons have also scored just 48 points, the fourth-fewest in the league. The result is a negative 46 point differential. Only the hapless Jets have a worse one.

The Falcons will face the Jets next week, in a game that will take place in London. Starting with the Giants last week, Atlanta is in the softest part of its schedule, with a bye week and the Dolphins following the London game. That’s four games against teams with a combined 2-10 record.

The Falcons did show signs of progress, albeit against a terrible Giants team. After giving up 40 points in each of their first two games, Atlanta allowed just 14 to the Giants and held Saquon Barkley to just 51 yards on 16 carries.

Matt Ryan also had his best game of the season, throwing for 243 yards and two touchdowns without an interception, completing three quarters of his passes. He also led a pair of fourth-quarter scoring drives. The first ended in a touchdown pass that tied the game with 4:13 left. The second resulted in the game-winning field goal with no time left on the clock.

Ryan should be able to have another successful outing against the Washington Football Team’s defense. The team will need to get first-round draft pick Kyle Pitts more involved in the offense, as the tight end is still not getting as many targets as he needs. The only new injury resulting from Sunday’s game was defensive lineman Marlon Davison, who left with an ankle injury and didn’t return.

The Pick

Washington’s defense has gotten off to an extremely slow start, but the pieces are still there from a unit that was among the five best in the league last season. For your NFL picks, look for the WFT to put things together on defense and have a strong showing against a weak team.

NFL Pick: (visit our Sportsbook Review)

*The pick reflects the line at the moment the writer made the play, the odds at the beginning of this article show the live line movement. Since the lines might vary, don’t forget to refer back to our live odds.